Help with groups for monitor mixes

[MarkOParticipant]

Hi all
I am fairly new to my SQ6 and feel I must be missing something here.
I manage the sound for my band. We play covers and use backing tracks for parts we don’t have. The tracks are fed into the desk from an Apple MacBook running Ableton via USB. I have 12 tracks channels including click and cues.
I often need to adjust the level of the entire set of backing tracks in band members IEMs which is a real pain having to adjust 12 channel faders for their mix.
I want a master volume fader for the tracks in each mix ideally. I thought groups would be the answer but it seems they are post fader so as I understand it, any change to the tracks levels for FOH will impact the levels in the monitor mixes. Not what I want.
So I looked at DCAs but it seems you can’t have a DCA with monitor channels assigned to it. IE a different DCA for the tracks (12 channels) in each monitor mix.

Is there a solution to this please? What am I missing?
Many thanks
Mark

[MarkPAmanParticipant]

DCA would control level of a post fade mix. Each send from each channel can be pre or post individually, so that may be an option that works.

Otherwise, if the changes you need are consistent between gigs you could use scenes with filters blocking everything but the level changes you want.

[Mike CParticipant]

Using audio groups any changes made at the group master will only change the level at FOH, the aux mixes either pre or post fade will not change.

Using a DCA group aux mixes that are post fade would change with the DCA master level
changes.

Are you feeding your monitors with a aux mix?

[MarkOParticipant]

Hi
Thanks to Mike and Mark for the reply. Sorry for not being clear. Yes all monitors, ears and wedges, are being fed from aux mixes. Some mono, some stereo.

So are you saying that I can have a DCA that controls only the fader levels for an aux mix and will not affect FOH levels? So I would define and assign a DCA for my backing track channels in each aux mix. So as I have 6 aux mix channels, I would define 6 DCAs and for each one, assign a set of back track channels for a particular mix?
I looked at the DCA assign screen and could only see the main channels for the tracks. I do in fact have one set up to adjust the whole back track set for FOH which works fine. I just want a similar thing for each individual aux mix.

As for using scenes, that won’t really help as there is no real consistency between gigs. All down to the venue, the crowd and how much the want to party!! 😄

Hope that is clearer.
Thank you
Mark

[Mike CParticipant]

You can assign a DCA to control aux/mix master fader levels.
If you want to turn every ones monitor mix up or down together
at the same time all of those aux masters would be assigned to a single DCA.

[ioTonParticipant]

dlive has the MCA’s for this case.

at SQ you can do a workaround via MIDI 😉
I’ve used the BomeBox to build such groups.
In there, I’ve designed some rules to control via midi the Aux level sends.

But with SQ on boards tool this is not possible…

The only way is, if every musican will get the same mix of bacing tracks, you can build a regular group, and send this group to the Monitor Aux mixes…

greetings,
dd

[MarkOParticipant]

Thank ioTon, I guess that is why I am having trouble doing this!! It doesnt do that!! Pity

So more general question.

If I had a drum kit mic’d up with say 8 channels. How would you deal with that in IEM mixes? I assume someone asking for the drums as a whole to be louder in their IEMs would mean I would have to push up all 8 faders for the drums in their mix?? Seems real clunky

Cheers
Mark

[Mike CParticipant]

If I had a drum kit mic’d up with say 8 channels. How would you deal with that in IEM mixes? I assume someone asking for the drums as a whole to be louder in their IEMs would mean I would have to push up all 8 faders for the drums in their mix?? Seems real clunky

If you have the channels space to spare you could get creative and double or triple
patch channels.

[ozdocParticipant]

Send all the drums to a group then send that group to the Aux mix? (even just have a specific drum group for IEMs if you desire – Turn the L/R off for that group) (Downside is the group follows the FOH drum mix balance.)
or.. Use SQ4U app and have all the drums controlled by a master control wheel for each IEM mix? Once the balance is correct you’ve got control over master drum volume to IEM with one touch.
or.. Don’t adjust all the drums to IEM because, really, who needs all the drums in IEMs except the drummer?
or.. Double patch as Mike has mentioned.

Plenty of options.
Seems what you’re really asking for is ganging ability specific to just a individual Aux mix.

[Mike CParticipant]

+1 for Ozdoc’s mention of the SQ4U app. The app group wheels do exactly what your asking for by giving you group control mix send levels.

[ioTonParticipant]

+1 for Ozdoc’s mention of the SQ4U App!
I’m no using this app – but there you can build groups of channels!!

Yeah – this is the right way!

[Mike CParticipant]

Keep in mind the SQ4U app only controls one mix at a time easily, to change mixes
requires a little set up.

Have your band members each set up with the app on their mix.

[MarkOParticipant]

Thanks all for the helpful responses. I think the SQ4 app is the way forward as the desk won’t do this directly.
I will get the band hooked up with it and they can setup there own backing track mixes.
Thanks again
Mark

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